The Chains That Bind Us
by PHAZONFUELEDKID
Summary: Through an odd series of events, Naruto's life is flipped upside down. Who would of thought he'd go on a quest to save the entire universe? Of course, he gets some help along the way from some friends... My first fic, so please R&R! Temporarily suspended
1. A Nightmare?

Okay, this is my first attempt at writing a fanfic. I don't really know exactly where I going with this, but I do have a plot. So, just read and review. My fate rests in your hands. Flames will be used for warmth, because my house is freezing cold this time of year. Finally, here is the disclaimer that's going to keep me out of court:

I don't own Naruto. Someone else that isn't me owns him.

The Chains That Bind Us

Chapter One

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A young boy about six years old is sitting in a tree on the outskirts of the proud village of Konoha. Staring towards said village, his eyes were fixed on a magnificent fireworks display. Ignoring his somewhat grubby clothes, the boy had bright blue eyes, spiky yellow hair, and a set of whisker-like marks on his cheeks. Altogether, he had a pretty nice face. It was made even nicer by the large grin nearly splitting his head.

Today seemed to be going rather well for the young Naruto Uzumaki. Today was the annual festival that celebrated the defeat of the monstrous Kyuubi no Kitsune at the hands of the Fifth Hokage. Of course, Naruto wasn't actually at the festival; last time he attended, he ended up with some very nasty bruises and cuts. Thankfully, he seemed to heal very fast, otherwise he probably would have had to go to the hospital. And Naruto hated doctors, with their pointy needles and disinfectant-scented rooms.

But that is beside the point. This boy was happy because it seemed that the villagers weren't going to bother him today. Normally, a mob would seek him out on the day of the festival, and he would spend his entire day on the run and out of breath. If they caught him, he would usually be in the hospital by the end of the day. However, today seemed different. He hadn't seen so much as a single person today, and he was hoping it would stay that way.

But Kami isn't always nice.

"Hey brat! Wha' are you doin'?" Looking down from his perch, Naruto sees a villager. He looked to be in his mid-twenties, probably. "You shtupid demon! I shayed "wha' are you doin"!" And drunk too, from the slur to his speak.

"I'm watching the fireworks! Aren't they pretty?" said Naruto, glancing back up as another large firework explodes. "Yeah, they shcertainly are. I bet you wish you could shee them up closhe, don' ya?" Naruto grins and nods his head, before frowning at the memory of what happened the last time he tried to do that. "I do, but the villagers might attack me if I get too close…"

"I know, how about I take you to shee the fireworksh? I can show ya a close place where no one will bother ya…" The villager's smirk goes unnoticed by Naruto, as does the broken bottle hidden behind his back. "Would you really!?" Naruto's face lights up at the chance, and he hops down from his perch.

"Yesh, it'sh jusht over there." said the man, as he pointed towards some bushes near the a small apartment. "In the bushes? How can I see the fireworks from there?" "Jush trush me…" said the villager. Still looking confused, Naruto makes his way toward the bushes.

Figuring it must hide some secret passage or something, Naruto begins to search the bushes, as the man walks toward him. He stands behind the boy, and pulls the broken bottle out from behind his back. Smirking, the villager raises it in the air, before swiftly bringing it down on young Naruto's head. With a thud, the boy drops to the ground, unconscious.

A dull throb of pain in the back of his skull awakens Naruto. Wincing, Naruto gets up and looks at his surroundings. He seemed to be in a sewer, if the leaky pipes overhead were any indication. "A sewer? How did I get here?" Standing knee-deep in the flowing sewer water, Naruto shivered. It was cold; not just the water, but the air too. Holding himself for warmth, he takes a glance around.

It was dark, and he could only see a few feet in any direction. But, seeing as he only had two ways to go, forwards or backwards, Naruto begins walking.

After what felt like at least an hour of walking with nothing to occupy him except the sloshing of his feet through the water, Naruto notices he isn't shivering anymore. "It feels warmer. But…" Sniffing the air, Naruto catches a whiff of a foul odor. "But it smells really bad! Ugh!" Letting go of his shoulders, Naruto ops for holding his nose instead.

However, even such a stench doesn't deter him from his path. Naruto feels drawn to the corridor, as if someone were calling him. "It's getting warmer and warmer." he notes, as it was getting close to being unpleasantly hot. Suddenly, the corridor opens into a large chamber, so large he can't see the ceiling.

What he can see is a cage. A very, very large cage, with a piece of paper placed over the lock. Taking a close look at the paper, Naruto sees a symbol of some sort on it. It appears to be a kanji, not that Naruto knows that. He still can't read.

Looking closely at the symbol, Naruto is suddenly gripped by an sense of fear. His eyes widen, and his breathing becomes labored. The air around him begins to feel heavy, like it is pressing down, trying to crush him. Backing away from the cages slowly, Naruto spins around and dashes back the way he came.

"Where do you think you are going?" spouts a sinister-sounding disembodied voice.

At these words, Naruto's body seems to freeze. His legs stop responding to whatever commands his fear-driven mind gives, and he finds himself turning around. Eyes widening, Naruto finds himself face-to-face with… Well, a face. He could make out a giant set of sharp teeth and a pair of equally large blood-shot red eyes through the darkness, but nothing more.

At this point, the young boy's mind is consumed by fear and panic. A bit more fear and panic than he can handle, it seems, as he once more collapses to the ground unconscious.

"Wretched boy… He can't even stand my presence long enough for me to warn him." The teeth form what could be called a grin. "Looks like he'll just learn the hard way." It speaks, eyeing a chain the was attached to the boy's back, and went all the way up to the darkness above. "It seems he can't even see his own Chain…"

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"You shouldn't be sleeping here."

Stirring, Naruto opens his eyes at the sound of a voice. "What?"

"It is unwise to be sleeping there. You may become ill."

Getting up, Naruto looks around to see the same bushes he was looking through before. Still a little shaken from his nightmare, Naruto jumps at the touch of a hand tapping his shoulder. Turning around, Naruto sees another boy, about his height. The boy is wearing a coat and sunglasses. "Um… Sorry, I didn't catch your name." says Naruto.

"I never gave it. However, you may call me Shino." Noticing that the sun is high in the sky, Naruto figures it must be around noon. "Well Shino, I wasn't sleeping there!" said Naruto, not wanting to lose what little pride he had. "Then what were you doing?" said Shino, his voice carrying none of the usual hateful tone Naruto was use to.

"Um…I was looking for bugs!" shouted Naruto, beaming at what he thought to be a perfectly believable excuse. "Well, perhaps I could help you?" inquired Shino. "Uh, okay. Ya, why not?" "Very well then. I suggest we search the trees, however. We won't find many insects in the bushes during this time of year. Cicadas are more common."

Making his way toward some trees, Naruto grins and looks at Shino from over his shoulder. "By the way Shino, my name is Naruto Uzumaki, and I'm going to be the next Hokage!" he loudly declares as he walks. "Is that so?" said Shino, as he joins Naruto in his search.

"So, what does a chicady look like?" asks Naruto, as he searches the branches of a tree. Ignoring his mistake in naming, Shino speaks up. "Cicada look like this." he says, as he pulls a small book from his pocket and opens it. Looking at the page, Naruto sees a picture of his target. "Got it! We'll find one in no time!"

Climbing up another tree, Naruto resumes his search through the branches as Shino inspects the trunks. "Shino, I found one!" yelled Naruto, as he drops from the branches, his hands clasped around something. "Let me see it, if you would."

Opening his hands, Naruto reveals the insect. "Naruto, that looks nothing like a cicada." Pulling his book back out, Shino shows Naruto the picture again. Looking between the page and his prize, Naruto huffs. "They look the same to me…"

"I assure you they are not. That is a cricket." Frowning, Naruto again looks back and froth from the cricket and the book. "You're too picky, Shino." "Perhaps I should explain the difference." The two boys sit down in the shade of the trees, and Shino hands the book to Naruto. He then begins a long-winded explanation about the various kinds of bugs and their names, as Naruto begins to fall asleep.

And so, Naruto makes his first friend.

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Tell me what you think. Remember this, is only my first attempt at writing a fanfic! Also, if you don't see anything resembling a plot in this story, that's okay. It will become a more clear in the next chapter or two.


	2. Two Twists of Fate

Tadaa! It's my second chapter! I hope you all enjoy it, because I worked hard on it! Hard, and loooooong, as I'm sure you're aware. Sorry about that, but I don't have lots of time to write.

Also, Naruto isn't mine. I wouldn't be sitting here writing this if he was.

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A beam of sunlight peeks through the curtains of a run-down looking apartment. It invariably lands, as all sunbeams must, in the eyes of someone sleeping peacefully in their bed. After all, that's the only thing those sunbeams seem to want to do. And it's not like any amount of curtains ever seem to stop the annoying nuisances.

The "someone" slowly floats back to conciseness and sits up, stretching his arms and giving a powerful yawn. He stands up and shuffles his way to the kitchen, before sifting through the mess of dishes and trash on the counter to find a cup of instant ramen. He adds water and put it into the microwave, before sitting back down to wait for his meal to finish.

Glancing around, his eyes eventually settle on a calendar, vaguely feeling as if he is forgetting something. His eyes suddenly widen, and the boy darts off to the bathroom, not even waiting for his ramen to finish. "Today's the graduation exam! I can't be late today!" he tells himself, before shoving a toothbrush in his mouth.

After taking care of his hygiene, the boy moves on to getting dressed, before he runs back into the kitchen, grabs his still unfinished ramen from the microwave. The boy practically blurs as he dashes out the door. He quickly makes his way toward the ninja academy, legs pumping and heart beating. "Ah, I'm almost there! I'll make it for sure!" he yells, before taking a sharp turn around a corner.

Now, the bad thing about corners is that you can't see past them. So if you come running around a corner, there's a good chance you'll hit anyone who might be on the other side. As it would happen, this was exactly the case.

Naruto collides, with surprising force, with whoever happened to be unlucky enough to be hit by him. "Ahh!" he yells, as he falls to the ground, and his precious ramen flies out of his . "Nooooooo!" He tries to catch it, but it proves difficult to do so from the ground. His good mood is spoiled the moment the noodles splatter across the dirt.

"Hey, watch where you're going next time..." These words come from the other individual involved in the crash. "My ramen…" mumbles Naruto, not paying attention to the other boy. "Are you even listening?" asks the raven-haired boy. Snapping out of his reprieve, Naruto looks at the other boy. "You watch where your going, Sasuke! You made me spill my ramen!" "Me? It's your own fault…" comes Sasuke's quiet reply. Growling, Naruto gets up and brushes himself off.

"Whatever. I've got an exam to past, so I can stand around and hang out Sasuke!" With this, Naruto is off again to the academy. In his rush, Naruto failed to notice a few things. First was the rather unhealthy look on the Uchiha's face, or his slightly labored breathing. He seemed rather ill. He also failed to notice the villagers who watched the short transaction. Glancing at the direction the blonde went, Sasuke slowly follows.

His breathing seemed off, and he even looked to be shivering, despite the warm weather. Step by step, he slowly makes his way towards the academy, feeling worse and worse as he goes on. His state does not go unnoticed by the people milling about the area, who look at him with concern. He is, after all, the prized Uchiha.

Despite his discomfort, Sasuke reaches the academy, although he is late. His breathing slow and faint, and his body twitching and shivering. He suddenly collapses, just steps away from the building! Some of the nearby villagers who had been watching him yell and rush up to him. The crowd yells amongst themselves, panicked over the boy.

"Something is wrong with this boy!" "You, go find a doctor!" "What happened?" "I'm not sure, but I bet it was the demon. He was angry at the Uchiha earlier!" "You think so?"

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Meanwhile, Naruto has made it to class. Still moping about his ramen, he sits down next to his classmate and friend, Shino Aburame. "Greetings, Naruto. You were almost late." "Late? Not today! Naruto Uzumaki is going to start his ninja life today!" Naruto proclaims loudly. "Yes, I know you are very determined to pass this year. I assume your chakra is no longer a problem, correct?" asks Shino.

You see, it had come to Shino's attention that the reason Naruto had been unable to pass year after year was because he couldn't make a clone. Shino managed to convince a Hyuuga to look at his chakra network, and found that, not only did Naruto have enormous chakra reserves, he also had a second, red chakra. Shino suspected that this both of these factors threw off Naruto's ability to make clones.

Several weeks ago, Shino brought up an idea to Naruto. He suggested having some of his insects feed off Naruto's chakra. Not enough of it to be harmful, just enough to lower his chakra to more useable levels.

"Oh yeah! I can makes clones now, easy!" brags Naruto. "Good. If we both pass, perhaps we will be put on the same team." says Shino, in his monotonous voice. "Definitely! Maybe we'll even get Sakura on our team!" the love-struck blonde gazes to the target of his affections, who is currently arguing with "Ino-Pig". Sighing, Shino looks back to the front of the class. Once he got started, there was no getting Naruto out of his trance.

With perfect timing, the door opens and the instructors step into the room. "Alright kids, settle down. I know you're all very excited about today, so let's get started!" says Iruka. "We've been over this before, but I'll say it again. To pass, you have to be able to perform the Kimwari, Henge, and Clone Jutsus. That's it."

And so, with Naruto busy eyeing Sakura and Shino quietly sitting, everyone patiently waits for their turn. Name after name, each person takes their test in turn, some leaving the exam room with a proud look, and others a disappointed frown.

"Sakura Haruno…" "Kiba Inuzuka…" "Choji Akimichi…" "Shino Aburame…"

Silently, Shino stands up and walks towards the exam room. "Hey Shino! Good luck!" yelled Naruto, giving him a thumbs up. "Not that you'll need it!" Shino nods his head, saying "Thank you, Naruto."

A few minutes later, Shino emerges from the exam room, and walks back to his seat by Naruto. "I passed the test, Naruto." "That's great! I knew you'd pass!" shouted Naruto, grinning. "Now all that's left is for you to pass, Naruto." replied Shino in a calm manner. "You know I will!"

"Naruto Uzumaki…"

Looking up at his name, Naruto grins to see that it is finally his turn. "Alright Shino, here I go!" he says, as he walks into the exam room. Iruka and Mizuki are sitting at the other end of the room, waiting. "Okay Naruto, you know what to do. Let's start with Kimwari, alright?"

Naruto nodded his head, and stepped to the center of the room. Mizuki stood opposite him, dulled kunai in hand. With a quick flick of the wrist, the steel weapon was thrown towards Naruto. It seemed like it would land smack dab in the middle of his forehead, but Naruto was suddenly switched with a nearby desk. The kunai sailed over the desk and hit the wall, clattering to the floor harmlessly.

Naruto grinned at Iruka, before the teacher cheerfully said "Very good, Naruto! Now, let's see a Henge." Putting his hands together, Naruto quickly gathered his chakra. He felt a slightly tingly sensation through out his body, indicating the Shino's bugs were doing their job. After a moment, Naruto gave a cry of "Transform!" before a cloud of smoke quickly spawned into existence around him.

As the smoke dispersed, two Irukas stood in the room. "Well Sensei, how is it?" asked Naruto excitedly. "Very good, Naruto! You're doing great." said Iruka, with a proud smile. The smile never faltered when he said his next sentence. "The only thing left is a clone."

This was it. The only thing standing between Naruto and that headband- his headband- was this one jutsu. For years, he could never get it right, but now things were different. Once more gathering his chakra around him, the boy felt the bugs, pulling little bits of his chakra away every time it passed through one of his chakra points.

The boy's shout of "Clone!" filled the air, before a cloud of smoke replaced it. Because this was the final hurdle for the boy to jump, the smoke obviously had to clear in a slow and dramatic fashion. So, at first, one shadowy form could be seen through the smoke. The figure stepped forward, and stared back into the smoke next to the Chunin teachers. Everyone was eagerly awaiting the smoke to clear…

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Beep. Beep. Beep. The steady, yet ominous beeps of machines filled the air, along with the mutterings of Konoha's best doctors. "Scalpel." Beep. Beep. Beep. "No good, his muscle fibers are in perfect condition." Beep. Beep. Beep. "His heart beat is steady too, but the chakra is fading from his body." Beep. Beep. Beep.

These men gathered around the sole heir to the Uchiha clan, standing over the boy's failing body. "I can't explain it." said the lead doctor. "Everything is fine; steady heart beat, healthy tissues, solid bones… But this boy is dying, no question about that." His assistant spoke up. "His chakra is draining away, but we can't find any reason."

Slamming his hand down on the table, the doctor proclaimed, "I will not let this boy die!" Suddenly, the calm beeping of the heart monitor became erratic. "Doctor, his body's almost completely out of chakra! His heart can't keep beating much longer!" yelled the assistant. Bee-beep! Silence. Beep. Acting with only his past years of medical experience as a guide, the doctor leaped into a frenzy of action. Silence. Beep, beep, beep! Silence again. "Nurse, increase the flow of artificial chakra to the boy's cardiac system!"

Working with a feverish vigor, the doctors toiled over their patient for what felt like an eternity, but nothing seemed to work. Beep. Silence. Beeeeeeeep… And silence, once more. Silence that was unnoticeable, yet at the same time held the attention of every person in the room.

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Naruto Uzumaki, ninja of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. It had a nice ring to it. The smoke had cleared, and the flawless clone had revealed itself to the world. Congratulations were passed to the boy, and Iruka stood tall. A glimmer of pride slide over his face, pride in his favorite student. So many thought he was a waste of effort, but Naruto had proven them wrong. Iruka couldn't wait to see those same people when this boy became Hokage.

"Hahaha, I knew it!" shouted Naruto, jumping in glee. "I knew I could do it!" Iruka set a hand on the boy's shoulder, trying to calm the ecstatic child. "I knew you could, too." he said, with a tune of happiness ringing in his words. Mizuki seemed a little less enthusiastic, but said nothing. Iruka walked back towards his desk and picked up a head band. The metal plate shined in the light.

"Naruto Uzumaki…", he said as he walked back to the boy, "welcome to the ranks of the ninja of the Village Hidden in the Leaves." He held the head band out to Naruto, whose trembling hand reach forward to claim his prize. But just before his fingers touched the metal, and hand gripped Naruto's wrist. The Anbu who had grabbed Naruto stood silent for a moment, before saying "Naruto Uzumaki, you have been summoned to the Hokage and Council of Konoha, under charges of the murder of a Konoha citizen."

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Oh, my first cliffhanger! It feels good to be on this side of it! Aren't I the evil one? Well, I hope you all like it! Leave a review, please!


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